Barran Press
In an exclusive interview with "Barran Press," Saif Muthanna, Director General of the Executive Unit for Managing Displaced Persons Camps in Marib, highlighted the severe hardships faced by displaced persons in Marib (northeast Yemen) as winter sets in and humanitarian aid from partner organizations dwindles.
Muthanna explained that the intervention from organizations, particularly in providing shelter, heating supplies, and food, is woefully inadequate to meet the needs of the massive number of displaced persons and the continuous waves of displacement to the governorate.
Displaced Persons Community
Marib is home to 2.2 million displaced persons from 14 Yemeni governorates, spread across Marib City, Marib Al-Wadi, Harib, Raghwan, and the southern and western districts of the governorate, Muthanna said.
He noted that over 292,000 displaced families live in 208 officially recognized camps, with an average family size of 3-7 members. Meanwhile, 86% of the displaced population resides outside camps in residential communities in cities and villages.
The displaced in Marib account for 62% of Yemen's total displaced population and 76% of those in areas controlled by the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
Management and Coordination
Regarding management and coordination, Muthanna stated that the local authority and international organizations, notably the International Organization for Migration (IOM), oversee the displacement camps in Marib. He specified that the Executive Unit manages 122 camps, while 87 camps are managed by international organizations operating in the governorate.
Muthanna described the Executive Unit's mechanism for managing and supporting displaced communities outside camps by dividing the districts into sectors. Marib City comprises 14 sectors, each containing multiple communities. Marib Al-Wadi includes nine sectors, with additional sectors in Harib (south) and Raghwan (north).
Basic Needs
In the interview, Muthanna issued a "distress call" from the Executive Unit to save displaced persons from the current waves of cold and frost striking the governorate. He highlighted the lack of essential winter supplies, particularly for children and the elderly.
He noted that the Executive Unit is working to cover the needs of displaced persons in the camps, rallying resources to meet their urgent winter requirements.
Muthanna outlined the primary winter needs for displaced persons: "shelter maintenance, heating supplies, winter kits, and winter clothing." He emphasized that food security is crucial, especially in winter.
He pointed out that many families still live in inadequate shelters. "We have more than 80,000 displaced families without any food security interventions," he said.
Distress Call
Muthanna reiterated that the needs of displaced persons this year are greater than last year. "We launched an early distress call and communicated our needs to the relevant authorities and international and local organizations in the governorate," he said.
Despite this, he noted that "so far, there has been no response or interventions in terms of winter kits or food security, except for an intervention by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center to cover 2,500 cases." He confirmed that "the need remains significant, and the gap is substantial."
He recalled a distress call issued by the Executive Unit last year to meet the winter needs of displaced persons, which resulted in only a 25% response, leaving a 75% gap between needs and interventions. "The tragedy is escalating, and the gap in needs is widening more and more," he said.
Massive Gap and Greater Absence
Despite the large number of displaced persons in Marib and the growing need for relief and humanitarian interventions, Muthanna said that international organizations and agencies have no "actual presence" in the governorate.
As a result, "there is a significant gap in interventions compared to the size of the need," he said. The organizations cite funding shortages due to events and disasters in other countries.
Muthanna considered the presence of international organizations' headquarters in Sana'a, controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi group classified as a terrorist organization, as one of the obstacles facing relief and humanitarian work for displaced persons in Marib.
"The presence of these offices in Sana'a exacerbates the suffering of the displaced," he said, adding that having these offices in Sana'a under Houthi control "allows for manipulation and non-compliance with humanitarian work standards."
He renewed calls for these organizations to open their main offices in Marib, which he said hosts 62% of Yemen's displaced population.
Manipulation of Numbers
During the interview, Muthanna pointed to manipulation in the numbers of displaced persons and the harm it causes to thousands of families stranded in the desert in Marib.
He said that these organizations rely on the number of displaced persons in the governorate from 2014, which was then 800,000, continuing to work with this figure until November 2023.
After convincing the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the International Organization for Migration to conduct a field survey, the number of displaced families in Marib was updated to 292,000. This comes amid ongoing waves of displacement to the governorate.
Permanent Housing
Muthanna emphasized the importance of finding permanent housing solutions for displaced persons that preserve their dignity and privacy and help them stay.
He said that at the beginning of 2024, in collaboration with the local authority, they provided land for permanent housing units. "Fourteen plots of land were provided, and the housing units will be vertical buildings."
To support this initiative, Muthanna said, "We met with humanitarian partners and asked them to provide vertical residential buildings for displaced persons due to the shortage of land."
He also mentioned a humanitarian work law requiring organizations to shift from emergency projects to sustainable projects after seven or eight years. "We are now in the 11th year and still in emergency projects," Muthanna said, noting that "this exacerbates the humanitarian situation for displaced persons in the camps."
He highlighted a technical presentation for displaced persons' shelters presented by the Executive Unit in 2021, specifying the type of shelter needed. He said partners began addressing these needs this year.
Muthanna said, "We conducted a survey with the International Organization for Migration to find sustainable solutions for displaced persons, and we are still working on that project to move from emergency projects to sustainable ones." However, he noted that "no transformation has yet occurred."
He confirmed that "there has been no response from international organizations to support sustainable housing projects." He renewed his call for organizations to "quickly transition to sustainable projects."
Evading Accountability
In response to questions from "Barran Press" about why the transition to sustainable interventions has not happened, Muthanna explained that "many organizations insist on keeping humanitarian work in Marib in the emergency phase to avoid legal accountability, as accountability and many laws are suspended in the emergency phase in countries around the world."
Muthanna said organizations fear that transitioning to sustainable projects would expose them to legal accountability and require them to change many of their work mechanisms and types of interventions.
He noted that the operational expenses of organizations are "very large" in emergency work due to the lack of enforced accountability laws. He added that "only a fraction of the millions of dollars announced to help displaced persons in Marib materialize."
The Last Refuge
Currently, Muthanna said, "The camp has become the last refuge for displaced persons who had previously moved to live in cities and rural areas after spending all their money and possessions."
He added that "many who lived in cities and rural areas have turned to camps after being unable to afford housing costs." He said, "The displacement of these families to the camps puts us in an emergency situation."
Muthanna emphasized the importance of providing these families with housing, noting that "Yemeni citizens typically spend what they have to secure decent housing for themselves and their families."
In summary, Muthanna described the situation as a major humanitarian crisis, with continuous displacement for the past 11 years, which is still ongoing.
Community Solidarity
Amid ongoing waves of displacement, declining roles of organizations, and the increasing needs of displaced persons, Muthanna spoke about community solidarity between host communities and displaced persons. He said this solidarity has significantly helped bridge part of the large gap caused by the weak role of humanitarian organizations.
He said all districts in Marib have received displaced persons from 14 Yemeni governorates. This number doubled when the Houthi group invaded several districts in the south and west of the governorate two years ago, which were already hosting displaced persons, causing further displacement along with the host community.
Muthanna thanked the host community for their hospitality and for providing a suitable and safe environment for displaced persons. He noted that more than 80% of displaced persons camps are on host community-owned lands.
In conclusion, Muthanna emphasized that the current phase requires solidarity, highlighting significant shortcomings from the government towards the Executive Unit in Marib, which is under the Prime Minister's office.
"We have a large workforce of 900 volunteers, in addition to the main office staff of over 64 people, and members in the districts working voluntarily without any salaries," Muthanna said. He expressed regret that the Prime Minister's office has not yet approved any operational budget for the Executive Unit.